I went to see A Midsummer Night's Dream performed by the RSC in London with my Drama class and the way the actor played Puck (or rather the way the director portrayed him) made be fall in love with the character ^^

I like Banquo, I guess because I think he's my kind of guy: showing up to haunt the feast is just the sort of thing I would do

But my favorite is probably Mercutio, because of his vivid expression of such a great range of emotion, which I envy. I was raised in the "If you can't say anything good..," school, and suspect that I would find myself saying something like -

"Um, guys, I know you're in the middle of a feud, and I'd hate to throw you off your rhythm or anything, but would you mind sending for a surgeon when you get a spare moment? I'd sure appreciate it."

- when (as demonstated) one ought to be roaring, with the last strength of one's freely ebbing blood -

i have only ever read The Tempest, and my favourite charector out of it is Prospero. he seems quite nice even though he is mean to begin with, lol. actually, my signature is a quote of his from the play, lol.
Heather

for me there are so many I like, I have no favourites, but I will name a few that I really do like.

~LADY MACBETH: in MACBETH
~AEGON: in THE COMEDT OF ERRORS
~JULIET, ROMEO, MERCUTIO: in ROMEO AND JULIET
~HAMLETT: in HAMLETT, PRINCE OF DENMARK
~PUCK: in A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM

They are just a few that I can remember of hand, but I really do not have a favourite Shakespearean character. They all have such strong points about them and all so unique in their own way...I will leave it at that before I start rambling

Lady Macbeth had such an interesting personality, to me. I did an entire analysis on her character for extra credit in an English class... By the way, did you know her first name was GRUACH?
God, if I had a name like that, I'd be a murderer too.
Love her speech which includes the phrase 'Unsex me here!'

And I like Iago because he... well. He's such an interesting man, isnt he? I like the evil one's better, and he was indeed a smart man. For all his misdeeds, he was certainly a genius. He says the things many only wish they could have said.

I don't know if I can pick just one favorite. Shakespeare wrote so many different kinds of characters just as he wrote different genres of plays. But, as I like character who are neither black nor white...and I want to pick from a play no one has mentioned... I will go with my favorite hero/villain combo

Tamara and Titus from "Titus Andronicus." What I like is that they are basically the male and female equivalent of each other. They both are steadfast in their loyalties to family (nevermind Titus killing two of his son's for dishonoring the family in front of the the king), and hell bent on revenge on the other out of family loyalty (though it is pretty personal by the end). What I also like is that they both have reason for seeking justice/revenge and both are willing to do horrible things to accomplish that. By the end, you can't tell which one is the hero.

Lady Macbeth was a ruthless fiend. She really did govern her husband...

Her cold and calculated cruelty remined me of Goneril and Regan from King Lear, but unlike them, she had that strange madness at the end that sort of redeemed her as a woman...she was too ambitious for her own good. Tut tut at Macbeth for completely discarding her.

Goneril and Regan were interesting too. They seemed to inherit a lot of their bad qualities from their own father. Yes, he's the tragic hero and all, but people are all too quick to dismiss G & R as absolute evils when the majority of the problems in the play come from the negligence of the 'daddies' (Lear & Gloucester).

I think I may alone in liking soft characters. I like Viola from Twelfth Night, because she is vibrant, witty, and feminine. I also like Helena from A Midsummer Night's Dream, because she is so single-mindedly loving that she is easy to relate to, to pity, and to want to slap some sense into.